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The poker world may collect a lot of oddballs and misfits according to those that aren't in the business, but there are many highly trained professionals, like doctors, lawyers, accountants, judges, teachers — yes, this list could go on forever — that like to take a hand and pit their skill and wits against the other players at the tables.

Even politicians like to mix it up in a poker game now and then, as evidenced by Sen. John McCain who was caught playing poker on his iPhone during a hearing on Syria. Fast forward to Sheldon Adelson and his campaign to ban any form of online gambling to protect the good citizens of the United States from their right to freedom of choice. And that shoots us right into the first topic on today’s The Inside Shuffle.

Andy Abboud Melt Down according to Nolan Dalla

At the end of January we ran an article on an upcoming iGaming North America Annual Conference where Andy Abboud, Vice President of Government Relations for Las Vegas Sands Corporation, and Mitch Garber, CEO and Director of Caesars Interactive Entertainment, would debate "Is iGaming the Problem or the Solution?"

Nolan Dalla is a WSOP.com senior writer and the longtime Media Director of the World Series of Poker and wears many hats in the poker industry — always for the good of the game. Dalla was at the IGaming North America Conference and blogged about it under the heading "Andy Abboud Melts Down at IGaming North America Conference" with this as the opening line:

"Sheldon Adelson’s Shill Spokesman Craps Out in Moderated Debate — Calls Opponents “Twitter Creeps,” then Admits to being “Lost” on High-Tech Issues as Hundreds in Audience Gasp in Disbelief"

Dalla goes on to say that "if Mr. Abboud had done any homework, he'd been studying the wrong textbook."

Dalla’s writing is a must-read on any subject. But if you've been following Sheldon Adelson's campaign to choke the life out of freedom of choice in the U.S., it's time to catch up with how misinformed and maligned Adelson's campaign really is. Read it here.

Dewey Tomko sells out poker community

Dewey Tomko should be building up the great game of poker and promoting it for what it is — a game of people played with cards — instead of adding his support to James Thackston's idea that online poker is a front for laundering money and a threat to national security.

Tomko is a poker Hall of Famer, has three WSOP bracelets, and $4.9 million in tournament winnings, and cash game winnings also. Is it self promotion, or an alliance, perhaps with the Sheldon Adelson witch hunt against online gaming that would take Tomko on this road?

Haley Hintze over at flushdraw.net puts a completely different spin on Tomko than the one portrayed in his op/ed appearance in the New Jersey newspaper. Read it here.

Sheldon Adelson’s Anti-Internet Gambling Bill

Like it or not, Sheldon Adelson isn’t just going to go away. He’s extremely rich, extremely opinionated, and from all appearances, extremely accustomed to having things go his way. So…

Sen. Lindsey Graham may introduce the Sheldon Adelson-backed bill this coming week according to rumors that are flying around Washington, D.C. If the rumors are true, Graham will do the dirty deed of introducing the bill that would add backbone to The Wire Act and ban all forms of internet gambling. Graham apparently waited to introduce the bill to add co-sponsors for a big slash-down and perhaps to also pair it with the House bill Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) will introduce this week. A note of interest: The bills have carve-outs only for horse racing and fantasy sports.

"Banning all online gaming nationwide, as this bill effectively does, would put American consumers at serious risk," said former Congressman Mary Bono, co-chair of the coalition. "This type of sweeping ban would only ensure that the current overseas black market continues to thrive, forcing online gaming further into the shadows where there are no consumer protections. It is impossible to stand in the way of the Internet; instead, we should embrace and shape these new technologies in a way that is safe for consumers."

PokerStars may have been put in a two year ‘wait and see’ holding pattern due to a ‘bad actor’ clause by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement back in January while pursuing a gaming license in New Jersey, but the world’s biggest online poker site isn’t going to just kick back and let that happen again without a fight.

PokerStars and the Morongo Indian Tribe are working together against the California Bad Actor Clause. California’s population rings up at over 38 million people and is the only state in the U.S. that won’t need to rely on state compacts for liquidity.

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